Molly Rogers Criticizes Met Gala Amid Bezos-Linked Protests

The Met Gala, traditionally a high-profile event, has become synonymous with displays of wealth. Its partnership with affluent sponsors often draws criticism for emphasizing opulence over artistic merit, a dynamic amplified this year by the involvement of Lauren Sánchez Bezos. The event also serves as a high-visibility fashion showcase.

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Molly Rogers, costume designer for *The Devil Wears Prada 2*, publicly denounced the 2024 Met Gala during a Fashionphile panel, saying she would not have attended and expressing disappointment that cast members Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci did.

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The gala, traditionally a showcase for the ultrarich, featured Lauren Sánchez Bezos as co-host, drawing criticism of its billionaire ties. Hours before the event, the “Ball Without Billionaires” fashion show used Amazon workers as models. Later, protesters gathered outside the museum; Chris Smalls, organizer of Amazon’s first warehouse union, was arrested after attempting to join the carpet with an anti-Amazon sign.

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• Early Monday – *The Devil Wears Prada 2* opens.

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• Hours before the gala – “Ball Without Billionaires” protest fashion show.

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• Met Gala kickoff – Lauren Sánchez Bezos co-hosts; cast members on the carpet.

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• Later that night – Chris Smalls arrested.

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• Wednesday – Rogers speaks at Fashionphile panel.

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Rogers said she declined the invitation, noting attendance was a personal prerogative, and she praised the protest outside the museum as the night’s true artistry. She also called Sánchez Bezos’s Schiaparelli dress “cheap.” No response from Met Gala organizers or the Bezos family appears in the sources.

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The coverage offers only Rogers’s perspective and the protest details; it lacks alternative accounts of security measures, exact protester numbers, or statements from Met Gala officials.

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• “I would not have gone,” — Molly Rogers, Costume Designer

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• “I am disappointed in people who did go. I know Meryl [Streep] did not go. I know others from our cast went, which is their prerogative.” — Molly Rogers, Costume Designer

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• “I think the real artistry was the guy who was protesting outside.” — Molly Rogers, Costume Designer

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• “How did she make Schiaparelli look so cheap?!” — Molly Rogers, Costume Designer

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Rogers’s critique adds a high-profile voice to scrutiny of the gala’s billionaire connections and its perceived insensitivity to labor concerns. The arrest of Chris Smalls illustrates how protest actions can intersect with the event’s security environment. The episode underscores the growing intersection of fashion and activism.

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